[11/21/06 - 08:25 PM]New FX Drama Series "Dirt" Set to Premiere Tuesday, January 2 at 10pm ET/PTCourteney Cox stars and executive produces the series, about the editor-in-chief of two of the country's most widely read tabloid magazines, which control the fates of the celebrities lining the pages.

[via press release from FX]

NEW FX DRAMA SERIES �DIRT� SET TO PREMIERE TUESDAY, JANUARY 2 AT 10PM ET/PT

Series Marks Courteney Cox�s First Major Role on Television Since Hit Series Friends

�Dirt� Produced by FX, Touchstone Television and Coquette; David Arquette and Courteney Cox Are Executive Producers

Creator Matthew Carnahan Is Director and Executive Producer

LOS ANGELES, November 30, 2006 � FX will premiere its new drama series Dirt, starring Courteney Cox, on Tuesday, January 2 at 10pm ET/PT.

Dirt was created by Matthew Carnahan, who wrote and directed the pilot episode. David Arquette, Cox, and Carnahan are Executive Producers, and FX, Touchstone Television and Coquette will co-produce the series. Production of Dirt is scheduled to begin in August and will be shot in Los Angeles.

In Dirt, Cox plays �Lucy Spiller,� the editor-in-chief of two of the country�s most widely read tabloid magazines, which control the fates of the celebrities lining the pages. Dirt revolves around the dynamic Spiller; a schizophrenic paparazzo uncovering the dirt people love to read; and a struggling actor trying to make a name for himself. The cast includes Ian Hart as paparazzo �Don Konkey,� Laura Allen as �Julia Mallory,� an actress whose star is on the rise and Josh Stewart as �Holt McLaren,� a struggling actor desperately in need of a hit.

Cox recently finished production on Sony/Revolution�s Zoom in which she stars opposite Tim Allen. The film is due for release August 2006. She is best known for her critically acclaimed performance as �Monica Geller� on the hit series Friends, which won a 2002 Emmy� Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. She moved to Los Angeles in 1985 and grabbed her first big break when she was cast in Family Ties as Michael J. Fox�s girlfriend, �Lauren Miller.�

Her standout performance as �Gail Weathers� in Wes Craven�s horror/comedy film Scream in 1996 led to a continued role in the two follow-up films. She starred opposite such talent as Neve Campbell, Rose McGowan, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Kennedy and David Arquette.

Carnahan has written numerous plays, television episodes (Fastlane, The Fugitive), and has written and directed independent film (Black Circle Boys, Rudyland). He is also a novelist, and his latest book, Serpent Girl, received wide critical praise.

In 2004 Cox and husband David Arquette formed their own production company, Coquette. As part of Coquette, their first project was an interior design show for cable�s WE (Women�s Entertainment) Network called Mix it Up. Cox served as a creator and producer of the show, which profiled couples and roommates whose styles are at odds. Coquette�s comedy Daisy Does America recently aired on TBS. In addition, Coquette has just wrapped their first feature project, a political horror thriller written and directed by David Arquette and starring Lukas Haas, Jamie King and Jason Mewes.

Touchstone Television has established itself as one of the television industry's leading providers of quality entertainment by developing and producing a diverse slate of popular, critically acclaimed and award-winning programming for broadcast and cable. The studio has 15 new and returning series slated for the 2006-07 season including the Emmy� award-winning drama Lost, Best Comedy Golden Globe� winner Desperate Housewives, and the critical and consumer phenomenon Grey's Anatomy.

Dirt is the fifth drama to receive a full season 13-epsiode series commitment, following the Emmy� and Golden Globe� award winners The Shield and Nip/Tuck, Emmy� and Golden Globe� nominated Rescue Me, the critically acclaimed Over There. Thief, which starred Andre Braugher, was a six-episode limited order drama. Another drama pilot recently shot by FX is Lowlife, starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver, which is still in consideration for pick-up.

FX is the flagship general entertainment basic cable network from Fox. Launched in June of 1994, FX is carried in more than 88 million homes. The diverse schedule includes a growing roster of distinctive original series and movies, an established film library with box-office hits from 20th Century Fox and other major studios, an impressive roster of acquired hit series, and marquee sports such as NASCAR.